Trade Union: Qatar World Cup construction will cost the lives of 4000 workers

Qatar’s construction sites are therefore estimated to be the scenes of 4000 workers’ deaths before the World Cup kick off in 2022. The number is based on the current mortality rate among Nepalese and Indian migrant workers, who make up the majority of Qatar’s 1.2 million foreign labourers, writes the Guardian.

The numbers are only estimates as the cause of death is not always clear and fatalities are often explained with heart failure. Still, the ITUC believes that the dangerous working conditions and overcrowded and filthy living environments are to blame.

The warning came after a Guardian investigation revealed that 44 Nepalese workers died from June-August this year, about half of them from heart failure or workplace accidents, writes the Guardian. The newspaper stated that it was citing figures from the Nepali government. 

Yesterday, officials from Nepal and Qatar attempted to play down the estimate and reports on poor working conditions at a news conference, reports Reuters. Here, Mohammad Ramadan, the Nepali government’s legal advisor for Nepali nationals in Qatar, stated: "We deny all that is mentioned in these false reports, and ask the bodies that publish them not to use Nepali workers as a means to achieve their inappropriate targets and agendas," writes Reuters.

"We also stress that all Nepali workers are safe and fully respected," he continued. Contrarily, Qatar’s Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs acknowledged the report and announced yesterday that the treatment of the country’s low income expats will be tackled with renewed commitment, writes Doha News.

“We will not hesitate to take necessary action to protect the rights of expatriate workforce,” Minister Abdullah Saleh Al Khulaifi announced at a press conference. The minister proposed a plan to deal with the issue, according to Doha News.

The plan includes:

• Increasing the number of inspectors who check on companies to ensure they are in compliance with labor laws, related to health, safety, accommodation and salaries;
• Hiring more translators to better communicate with workers of different nationalities; and
• Setting up more branch offices of the Labor Department, especially in areas of high concentration of workers, such as the Industrial Area.

The poor labour conditions, exploitation and unsanitary living environments for migrant workers in Qatar have also been documented by other groups including Human Rights Watch.

Sources: The Guardian, Reuters, Doha News